Taib holds sway in rural areas
There is a resentful urban swell against him, but Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud still commands the rural ground which is likely to return his coalition to power with a two-thirds majority.
The politics of development has expired in the urban centres but it is still the creed in the hinterland. Taib knows that Barisan has hardcore supporters in the rural parts and they would not, as he put it, “gyrate to the beat of the opposition.”
Analysis by JOCELINE TAN, The Star
IT WAS the first time that people living in the Iban longhouse known as Rumah Juboh had ever seen their Chief Minister in the flesh.
But the real excitement, especially among the womenfolk in the longhouse, was the presence of Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud’s young and beautiful wife. It was the first time he was bringing Puan Sri Ragad Kurdi Taib on the campaign trail.
As usual, all eyes were glued on Ragad. Photographs of the lady do not do her justice because she is drop-dead gorgeous in person and had fitted in well with her new environment.
She had ditched her usual feminine attire of long dresses and shawls for a rugged shirt and trousers. She also had on a jaunty-looking golf cap and aviator-style sunglasses, fashion items that Taib himself is quite fond of wearing.
Ragad had earlier joined her husband and other Barisan Nasional leaders at the launch of the Barisan manifesto in Sibu.
Some have wondered why the launch was happening in Sibu and not the capital Kuching. After all, Sibu is basically a town built on timber money which is trying to shrug off its rough and tumble history.
The reason is that Sibu is where Barisan is under the greatest threat and where it has the most seats to lose. It is also here that DAP is at its hungriest for new seats to conquer.
The state seats within the parliamentary areas of Sibu, Lanang and Sarikei form part of what one Sibu professional calls the “central region”.
This central region has seven state seats, six of which have a sizeable Chinese population.
DAP, which already holds two of these seats Bawang Assan and Meradong is hoping for a clean sweep. It is already planning to stage its grand finale ceramah in Sibu.
Given that, the central region holds the greatest danger for Barisan and the most opportunity for DAP. If Barisan wants to stop more rockets from landing in Sarawak, it has to stop DAP in the central region.
This was why Taib chose to launch the Barisan manifesto in Sibu. He is sending a signal of how important the seats in these parts are to Barisan.
The emphasis of the manifesto is still very much on the politics of development and reflects the genuinely multi-cultural outlook of Sarawakians.
The bulk of Sarawak’s population are rural based and issues like infrastructure and amenities are still of great concern.
Moreover, Taib knows that his vote base lies in the rural areas where the Barisan is known as the “pemerintah” where the Government is Barisan and Barisan is the Government.
The politics of development has expired in the urban centres but it is still the creed in the hinterland. Taib knows that Barisan has hardcore supporters in the rural parts and they would not, as he put it, “gyrate to the beat of the opposition.”
“At the end of the day, the rural seats are still his vote bank. They will deliver the two-thirds majority to him,” the Sibu professional said.
Taib always feels at home in the longhouses even though many of them are bastions of Christianity and have religious memorabilia all over the place.
At the Juboh longhouse which is about 80km from Sibu, he seemed so relaxed and happy that one might have forgotten there was a contentious election going on.
Taib is a Melanau but he has mastered the Iban language and his speech was almost entirely in Iban, a fact that went down well with the crowd.
The astute politician in him also knew that many in the audience were more interested in looking at his wife than in his speech.
He told them: “Please don’t make it a habit to change wives too often.
“Some men marry then divorce, then marry, divorce, marry again. This is not the time to change the Government like changing wives,” he said to much laughter from both men and women.
He claimed he was “puzzled” over the record number of candidates in the election. But he knows that the huge number of multi-corner fights can only benefit his coalition because they will result in splitting the opposition votes.
Taib also made a special effort to reach out to the Chinese community in Sibu.
Yesterday, he met with some 300 Chinese community leaders in the hotel owned by Rimbunan Hijau, the biggest timber company in the state. It was supposed to be a dialogue that turned out to be a monologue.
However, Taib took pains to explain the policies he had put in place over the years and stressed that Sarawak must find its own solutions to politics and issues.
“He is trying to persuade the Chinese in Sibu to stay with Barisan.
The session was to give the community a better understanding and insight into his policies.
“I’m not sure about the impact but for once, people at the back were not chit-chatting away. Everyone was listening closely,” said Dr Gregory Hii, the chairman and CEO of a financial institution in Sibu.
The Chinese business tycoons in these parts have benefited from Taib’s government. Besides, timber company shares have gone through the roof because of a rise in demand for timber in the wake of the tsunami in Japan.
The timber magnates in Sibu owe their wealth to Taib and they are expected to throw their weight behind him. Taib’s call for continuity resonates most among this group. Timber politics will play a big role in the central region.
In fact, Datuk Tiong Thai King, the younger brother of the owner of Rimbunan Hijau, is a candidate in the Dudong state seat here.
It is still early days in what some journalists have dubbed, “Amazing Race Sarawak”, but it seems like rural Sarawak is going one way while urban Sarawak the other.
